


An Unexpected Friendship

by mfingenius



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Don't copy to another site, Draco Malfoy Speaks French, Gen, Harry is a gay disaster, Hogwarts Fourth Year, Ron notices, it's not subtle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:40:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23371822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mfingenius/pseuds/mfingenius
Summary: Draco Malfoy speaks French, and him and Fleur get along well. Really well.Harry's totally (not) okay with it.
Relationships: Fleur Delacour & Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter & Ron Weasley
Comments: 18
Kudos: 275





	An Unexpected Friendship

“Since when does Malfoy speak  _ French?”  _ Harry asks, glaring tightly towards where Malfoy and Fleur are speaking, sitting by the fountain in the courtyard, their nearly-identically matched blonde heads pushed together.   


Honestly, their hair color is exactly the same! What’s  _ up _ with that?

“The Blacks are originally French,” Hermione says distractedly, pushing her hair out of her face and frowning down at her book. “They still teach it to their children. Sirius probably speaks French, too.”

Harry barely listens to her; he knows that, logically, with the Triwizard tournament - and the fact that he’s  _ in _ it - he shouldn’t be more worried about the tournament and less attentive of Malfoy, but it’s just - it’s  _ weird. _

Malfoy doesn’t talk to girls, alright? Not even girls, Malfoy barely talks to anyone! He’s friends with Zabini, and that’s about it. And now, what, two weeks into Beauxbatons’ stay, and he’s practically snogging Fleur?

Harry has seen them together  _ everywhere _ this week. In the library, walking around the Black Lake, eating in the Great Hall. It’s -  _ weird _ . Fleur’s clever, and gorgeous, and -  _ badass _ . And okay, Malfoy is wicked smart, and, well, attractive - in a way that makes Harry very confused and also somewhat angry - and he’s, well, good at things like  duelling , and Defense, which could probably make him badass in some sort of situation, but Harry doesn’t like them together.

It’s  _ weird _ .

Still, Ron’s looking at him in an odd way like he’s realizing something and Harry doesn’t like that, so he hastily looks away and pretends to read the book in his lap.

*

They go to the Yule Ball together. They go to the Yule Ball.  _ Together _ .

They look equally gorgeous as they stand next to each other, eternally whispering and laughing; even the other French students aren’t privy to their conversations, because anytime any of them come closer, they both stop speaking and make polite conversation until the person leaves.

It’s infuriating.

“How does he even  _ look _ like that?” Harry wonders out loud, while he and Ron are sitting broodingly in one of the tables. “ _ No  _ one looks like that! This is - the sort of embarrassing childhood memory you laugh about, no one is supposed to look good!”

And Malfoy does look good; he’s wearing black robes, and, for once, his hair is not slicked back; it’s loosely framing his face, in a way Harry had never seen it before, and it looks - shiny. Soft.

One of the strands keeps getting in his eyes, and he tucks it behind his ear every few minutes while speaking rapidly with Fleur.

It’s driving Harry insane.

It also doesn’t help that Ron’s giving Harry that  _ odd _ look again, and it makes him feel weird. Like Ron knows something he doesn’t.

But Ron doesn’t say anything, so Harry doesn’t either.

*

They put Malfoy in the lake for Fleur. 

It’s -  _ weird.  _ They’re not that close, they’ve known each other for less than a year! How could Malfoy be the person Fleur would miss the most? Even if her family isn’t here, and she doesn’t seem close to anyone from Beauxbatons, Malfoy is -  _ Malfoy _ . 

He must’ve done something by now to piss Fleur off!

Except, evidently, he didn’t, because when Harry pulls him up - because he won’t leave the bloody prat to die just because he’s a prick - Fleur hugs him and kisses his cheek and thanks Harry endlessly.

Malfoy looks sort of dazed, and he gives Harry a small ‘thanks’ that make Harry’s belly do a weird floppy thing. He must be coming down with something.

*

Fleur’s family can’t come to see her - Harry doesn’t know why - but Malfoy’s there with her when the other Champions’ families come, so she’s not alone. Harry sees Fleur eyeing Bill up and down appreciatively, and - unlike Harry would’ve thought - Malfoy doesn’t look jealous.

He looks - amused. Excited, sort of. If Harry’s not mistaken, he eyes Bill too, before flushing lightly and looking away, and then him and Fleur begin to whisper in French again.

Before the families leave, Fleur goes up to Bill to start a conversation, and Malfoy’s grinning the entire time.

*

“Mate, you’ve  _ got _ to stop it,” Ron tells him one day. They’re in their dorm, and Harry’s glaring out the window, thinking about the way Fleur and Malfoy had been whispering together during dinner.   


“What?” Harry asks, confused.

“The _Malfoy_ thing,” Ron tells him, as though it’s obvious. “It’s - weird.”

“What?” Harry asks. He frowns. “Don’t you think it’s weird he’s friends with Fleur? They’ve nothing in common!”   


“I don’t know,” Ron shrugs. “I don’t understand anything they’re saying, so I don’t know what they talk about, but it’s an awful lot. I don’t think I’ve heard Malfoy speak English in months.”   


Harry hasn’t, either, which has honestly been bothering him. No taunts, no insults. Nothing. Malfoy has barely even looked his way.

“Right!” Harry exclaims. “It’s  _ weird _ .”   


“You’re jealous.” Ron tells him, and Harry opens his mouth, before he closes it again. Silence. Then,   


“ _ What?” _ He asks incredulously. “You think I’m  _ jealous?  _ I don’t care about Fleur! _ ” _   


Ron shifts in his bed, shrugging. “I think you’re jealous  _ of _ Fleur.”

More silence. Then, more shrilly, “ _ What?” _

Ron grins slightly, and spreads his hands in a placating gesture. “Look mate, I don’t care who you like. If it’s Malfoy, it’s Malfoy. I mean, I get it, sort of. You two are - intense about each other. It makes sense, I think, so-”

“You think I  _ like _ Malfoy?” Harry asks.

Ron looks at him incredulously. “Well, err, yeah.”

“I don’t!” Harry says. Does he? No. That’s - impossible. Insane. Ron is totally insane.   


Although Malfoy is attractive. And his eyes are - good. Nice. Maybe Harry’s spent more time than is usual thinking about Malfoy’s eyes. 

Huh.

“I don’t,” He repeats, a little more uncertain.   


Ron looks relieved. “Alright, good. Because I’m totally cool about you being into blokes, but Malfoy?” He shudders. “I mean, I’ll make my peace with it if I have to, but I’d rather not have to.”

Ron thinks he’s into blokes? 

This is turning into a very weird conversation. 

He catches sight of white-blonde hair out the window - and it’s after curfew, so Harry doesn’t know what it is Malfoy and Fleur are doung outside - and stares distractedly.

Malfoy.

Being into Malfoy.

Huh.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed reading! You can find me on tumblr @mfingenius and request anything :D


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